OTTAWA, Ontario — The Islanders signed 2024 first-round pick Cole Eiserman to a three-year entry-level deal Wednesday, the team announced.
Eiserman, whose season at Boston University ended with a loss to UConn last weekend, will need to sign a tryout contract to join the AHL Bridgeport Islanders this season, as his contract starts in 2026-27, but that should be a mere formality.
This move was expected for Eiserman, who finished the season with 18 goals and 10 assists in 32 games with BU.
The 19-year-old winger has a booming one-timer and high-end offensive ability, but his NHL potential will boil down largely to whether he can commit himself defensively enough to earn the trust of coaches at the professional level.
“It’s been there the last two years I think,” Eiserman said after playing at Madison Square Garden over Thanksgiving weekend, a game attended by members of the Islanders front office. “Still getting better at it but they let me play my game as well. I can’t have my mindset fully on defense or else I might lose some of my offense.”
Eiserman is the second Islander to sign his ELC this week after Kashawn Aitcheson did so Tuesday, but may not be the last.
Wisconsin’s Quinn Finley, a 2022 draftee, could sign as well once the Badgers’ season ends. Danny Nelson, who was seen as a potential signee out of Notre Dame, will reportedly stay another year in South Bend to play with his brother.
